-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Say hello to the new Captain .

In the first issue of Marvel 's `` All-New Captain America , '' in stores today , onetime sidekick Sam Wilson sheds his Falcon persona and picks up the Captain 's patriotic shield .

Sam replaces Steve Rogers , who begins to age rapidly after losing a battle -LRB- he came from the World War II era , after all . -RRB-

With a woman taking over the role of Thor , an African-American Captain America is yet another example of the diversity trend in comic books .

CNN recently spoke to writer Rick Remender on what to expect with this big change .

CNN : What led to this decision to hand over the role of Captain America ?

Rick Remender : I had been writing Steve Rogers for a little bit ; he 's this kid raised in the Great Depression , and I wanted to explore that . That story has been the status quo of Captain America since the 1960s .

As I was developing the series , I fell more in love with Sam Wilson as a character and realized that in Marvel continuity time , he would be a Generation X-er , as am I. He 'd have a more modern sensibility and be able to speak to an audience the way Steve Rogers would n't be able to , so we started building the story from there .

CNN : How will Sam handle things differently than Steve ?

Remender : The two characters both come from a tumultuous , difficult place . But Sam is somebody who is n't reflecting on things as a soldier . He wants to stand up and put himself between the forces of evil and corruption and things that would harm the everyday citizen . Sam will not be working as closely with S.H.I.E.L.D. as Steve -LRB- spoiler alert ! -RRB- . Ultimately , the way they approach problems will be quite different .

CNN : What will Steve 's role be now ?

Remender : Steve Rogers -- who has aged now ; time has caught up to him -- will still be a tactician , providing his military experience .

Steve is almost an eye in the sky . Since he is incapable of serving as Captain America , he will be at the Avengers mansion at the command station . Beyond that , he 'll be a military strategist , the one thing that Sam really is n't .

CNN : What have you heard from fans ?

Remender : The feedback 's been great ! Obviously , there 's been a few ugly comments and people who have taken offense to the change for various reasons . But that 's been the challenge of the modern era , to ignore the hate online and to focus on the positivity .

One of the things we got were photos of kids holding the shield . We got a photo from a predominantly African-American classroom , where the kids were jumping up and down with joy with the image of Sam behind them . Culturally , that 's something that is significant . If it helps one kid feel a part of something and makes them feel that they are reflected in their heroes ... that 's a wonderful byproduct that will hopefully have more positive effects than just being an exciting superhero comic .

CNN : Will Sam meet up with other characters , like the new Thor ?

Remender : Jason Aaron -- who is the writer of `` Thor '' -- he and I have been cooking up some potential crossovers for the two books , along with appearing in `` Avengers '' stories .

CNN : How long will this last ?

Remender : When I proposed it originally , it was seen as `` You ca n't do it unless it 's going to be a long-term change . '' Depending on how well I do my job and people 's reaction , this could be a permanent change or something that goes on for a good long while .

CNN : What can fans expect in upcoming issues ?

Remender : I wanted to put Sam into something that felt like a traditional `` Captain America '' comic book but wanted him to come up against an insurmountable wall unlike anything Steve has even faced .

This is basically the rise of Hydra in the Marvel universe , in a way we 've never seen a terrorist organization rise before . Under the watch of Baron Zemo and Chancellor Cassandra , they 're moving forward with some big James Bond-ian evil plans . Hydra has already won before Sam realizes that they 're up to something . We put him up against a huge wall that 's going to have giant ramifications for the entire Marvel universe . That has implications we can appreciate in the world we 're living in today .

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Captain America 's onetime sidekick Sam Wilson debuts as the new Captain

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The writer notes that Sam comes from a very different background

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The new Captain America will be around long-term